


cover me, I'll cover you

by mollivanders



Series: second chances [1]
Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Canon Universe, Caretaking, F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-30
Updated: 2017-01-30
Packaged: 2018-09-20 20:06:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9510959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mollivanders/pseuds/mollivanders
Summary: She stumbles onto the ship after him, cradling her arm, and as K2 and Bodhi initiate take-off he turns towards her, heart pounding with fear and adrenaline as her breath comes in short puffs.“Are you hurt?” he asks blindly, reaching for her only to snatch his fingers back as she lurches away. He forgets she’s like a feral animal when she’s injured, used to being the only person having her back. “Let me see,” he says, trying to force authority and calm into his voice, both to reassure her and take control of the situation.Inside, he’s anything but.





	

**Author's Note:**

> There's no real deep plot here, but Cassian's anxiety over Jyn is legend. Jyn gets hurt at the end of a mission and Cassian takes care of her while studiously avoiding his emotions.

She stumbles onto the ship after him, cradling her arm, and as K2 and Bodhi initiate take-off he turns towards her, heart pounding with fear and adrenaline as her breath comes in short puffs. 

“Are you hurt?” he asks blindly, reaching for her only to snatch his fingers back as she lurches away. He forgets she’s like a feral animal when she’s injured, used to being the only person having her back. “Let me see,” he says, trying to force authority and calm into his voice, both to reassure her and take control of the situation.

Inside, he’s anything but.

“I’m _fine_ ,” she barks, but the pale shade of her skin and the way she sways on her feet launch him forward in time to help her sit down. “I’m fine,” she mumbles again, eyes sliding shut, and his panic level rises, unsure of exactly how bad her injuries are. She grips her shoulder tighter. “I might,” she amends, “have a concussion.”

“How long, K?” he yells at the cockpit and the droid swivels his head back to the passenger bay.

“We will reach the Rebel fleet in approximately three hours.”

Too long.

“Come on,” he says, helping her back up. “We’re going to patch you up.” He slips her good arm around his shoulders to help her walk to the cot at the back of the passenger bay and mentally catalogues the supplies they have on board. He can feel her heart pounding against her chest, can smell the iron tang of blood through her clothing.

“You’re not my medic,” she grumbles and normally it would make him smile but anger and fear are warring for dominance right now and he just shakes his head. “You’ll just have to settle for me then,” he says, helping her sit on the cot, back to the ship’s bulkhead. “But you can’t fall asleep, okay?”

She tries to pull her jacket off while he grabs the medkit and winces, unable to pull it off one-handed. There’s nothing for it. He sits next to her and uses his vibroblade to carefully slice the jacket off. Underneath, a red star is blooming just below her shoulder and her arm is sitting at an awkward angle to her shoulder.

“That,” she says petulantly, “was my favorite jacket.” He thinks if she can be grumpy, maybe she’ll be okay. He glances up at the cockpit where Bodhi is worriedly watching them and gives a quick nod. Bodhi returns it and mutters something to K2 about increasing their speed.

Under other circumstances, the next step would have him feeling very differently. “Jyn,” he says, hoping to keep her awake, “I need to remove your shirt to see the wound.” Her eyes snap open and he waits out the galaxy’s longest pause. “Fine,” she says, trying to sit up. “Do your worst, captain.”

He cuts the shirt away easily and finally gets a good look at her injuries. Dislocation and a deep blaster wound that looks like it caught her collarbone along the way. He swallows his instinct to yell about her taking risks and shifts his position next to her. “I’m going to fix your shoulder first,” he says, reaching for her forearm, “but I need you to be very still. Can you do that?”

She keeps her eyes firmly on his and nods, dragging a knee up to brace herself on the cot. “This,” he says, “may hurt.” He pulls firmly and a sharp gasp escapes her, eyes squeezing shut, but a soft pop confirms her arm is back in place. Better, his concern that her collarbone was weakened enough by the blaster shot to break with the reduction bears no fruit. She’s panting hard but her eyes are open and the danger of her falling asleep seems to be passing. 

“What happened?” he asks as he digs through the medkit, looking for bandages. “I thought you were right behind me.”

“I was,” she says, leaning her head back against the bulkhead. “Spotted some stormtroopers flanking you and hung back to pick them off. Grenade went off and – ”

“You _hung back to pick them off_?” he asks, incredulous, his eyes snapping up to look at her. Her skin is flushed pink with pain and adrenaline but her eyes are calm and firm on his. “You didn’t call for me? For backup?”

She tries to shrug, winces, and he tears open a warm sanitation cloth to dab at her wound. It must hurt like hell because she grabs at his leg, bracing herself. He’s suddenly acutely aware of how close they are, and how unclothed she is, but she’s not letting go.

“You were almost away,” she says, her eyes sliding shut. “I had it handled.”

She must have, because he didn’t even know there were stormtroopers coming after them. Worry had already found a home in him anyway. “It was a stupid risk,” he says, and her eyes open in narrow slits as he finishes cleaning her wound.

“You wouldn’t have done the same?” she asks, and he’s surprised by the question in her tone. He stops what he’s doing and looks at her, trying to convey as much emotion as possible in his answer. “Of course I would,” he mutters, and instinctively brushes his thumb against her jaw. “You should just call for me next time.” 

She seems paralyzed by his touch, by the moment, and he drops his hand, feeling suddenly exposed. There’s a long pause as he tears open a bacta patch, gently pressing the edges around the wound. “Okay, deal,” she says, breaking the silence, and squeezes his leg where she’d rested her hand. “The next time one of us does something stupid, we’ll call the other.” He looks up to see her smiling and it’s infectious, worms around the worry in his heart and releases it until he can smile back. 

This isn’t, he thinks to himself, the worst thing about this rebellion.

“It would be more optimal,” K2 says, interrupting them, “if neither of you did anything stupid.” He freezes for a moment, the droid having snuck up on them, and Jyn pulls her hand away. He feels its absence keenly, strongly, and turns to face K2 with a fresh scowl in place. “What is it, K?” he asks. “I thought you would like to know Lieutenant Rook has identified a closer rebel convoy. Sergeant Erso will receive proper medical care shortly.”

“Thanks, K,” Jyn says next to him, and her face has closed up again, unreadable. “Cassian took care of me.”

“I’m sure that he did, sergeant,” K2 says, heading back to the cockpit. Somehow he still manages to sound like the most judgmental droid in the galaxy. 

“Does he still dislike me?” she asks Cassian, and he clears his throat, clearing away the medkit debris and helping her shrug back into what’s left of her jacket.

“K2 dislikes everyone,” he says, leaning back next to her to wait for the drop out of hyperspace. “I think you’re growing on him though.” She hums, thoughtful, and tentatively, he stretches his arm around her, letting her rest against him.

“You still can’t sleep,” he murmurs and she nods. “I know.” 

(He’s not sure if it’s for her benefit, or for his.

 _Later_ , he thinks. He’ll deal with that later.)

_Finis_

**Author's Note:**

> I'm [ladytharen](http://ladytharen.tumblr.com/) over at Tumblr if you want to flail about Star Wars!


End file.
